Man charged with hit-and-run death

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HAMMOND, Ind., March 19 (UPI) -- An Indiana man who allegedly ran away and tried to hide after striking a construction worker with such force the body broke his windshield has been arrested.

Robert Shannon, 35, of Hammond was arrested late Tuesday, 21 hours after Christopher Jenkins of Valparaiso was killed, the Chicago Tribune reported. Police said Shannon admitted killing Jenkins.

Jenkins was part of a pothole repair crew on the Borman Expressway in Lake Station, Ind., when he was struck, police said. Other workers said the car that hit him did not brake, even though the construction area was well marked.

One witness said he ran over when the car came to a stop and heard the driver say "My life is over" before grabbing a bag from the vehicle and taking off. He said the driver's words were slurred.

Shannon told police he hid in an abandoned trailer all day and then emerged after dark and called his girlfriend from a pay phone.

Shannon has been charged with reckless homicide and leaving the scene of an accident and was held in lieu of $60,000 bail.